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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider De Lima to file charges vs fake news peddlers spreading news about her 'death'

De Lima to file charges vs fake news peddlers spreading news about her 'death'

Published Mar 20, 2022 02:28 pm

"This cannot be allowed to go on."

(Photo courtesy of Sen. Leila De Lima Facebook Page)

This was Senator Leila De Lima's warning to the individuals behind the spread of fake news that she's dead. She said she is eyeing legal actions against them.

"I am instructing my legal team to file the necessary legal action against those responsible for this fake news," De Lima said on her dispatch dated March 18.

"I am as healthy as I need to be and as long as I have to in order to bring all those responsible for my persecution before the bars of justice," she added.

The detained Senator called out a channel on YouTube, which she alleged as the source of the fake news, and lamented its continuous gain of views despite "the blatant lies and fake news that it peddles in all of its posted videos."

De Lima further expressed laments over her detractors' attack to her on top of her already "handicapped" campaign.

"It is not enough that I have already been unjustly imprisoned for more than five years. It is not enough that I am running for re-election with the handicap of campaigning from jail, without being able to go out to talk directly to voters about my program of government and convince them why I deserve a renewed mandate," she said.

She further questioned her not being allowed to conduct live video and audio interviews with the media, or participate in senatorial candidates’ debates, "as if the mere sight of my face and sound of my voice will cause some instability or be a threat to national security."

"All of these are not enough, for them to still go on spreading lies to derail my campaign, handicapped as it already is. What these people are doing is already beyond condemnation," De Lima said.

"It is an abomination of all sense of decency, fairness, and morality. It is they who deserve to be in jail, not me," she added.

A human rights defender and prominent political prisoner under the Duterte administration, De Lima marked her fifth year in unjust detention last Feb. 24. She has consistently and firmly asserted her innocence in the trumped-up charges filed against her.

Due to lack of evidence, De Lima was acquitted in one of these three cases on February 17, 2021, while two other cases are still pending.

De Lima, a former Justice secretary, is running for reelection under Vice President Leni Robredo's senatorial slate.

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Fake News Senator Leila de Lima YouTube 32022
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